A Yearning For More Learning

With Times Tough, Adults Are Returning To The Classroom

July 19, 1992|By BARRY FLYNN Daily Press

The College of William and Mary has also felt an upsurge in interest in adult education. Enrollments were about 1,000 this year, the highest level ever and up 20 to 25 percent from a year earlier, said Charles Dombek, head of the college's business activities.

He attributed the rise to cutbacks in similar programs at other schools and "to the economic change in the environment here on the Peninsula."

FOR THE RECORD - Published correction ran Wednesday, July 22, 1992. An article and a photo caption in Sunday's Business section incorrectly reported that Katherine Pleasant is in a certificate program at Thomas Nelson Community College. Pleasant is a candidate at TNCC for an associate's degree in applied science in office systems technology/executive secretary.

One program that does not seem to have benefited from the job-education trend is the master's of business administration program at W&M.

"MBA programs are probably trending down" around the country, said Robert M. Fulmer, director of W&M's executive MBA program. "The fact that our applications have held steady, in view of a recession and increased competition, is probably a pretty positive sign."

Although the recent influx of new students has lowered the average age of its students, Christopher Newport has also seen older students returning to school, said Keith McLoughland, chief admissions officer for the university.

McLoughland, who also carries a teaching load, said the older students he sees in night classes make for a different academic environment.

"The average age is about 35," McLoughland said. "You get adults who are retooling, who are upgrading themselves; you get people who are there for their own intellectual curiosity; and you get retired people who are traveling and want to know something about the world they're traveling in."

In contrast to Thomas Nelson, Christopher Newport offers only for-credit courses that can be used in degree programs. HU and W&M also concentrate on academic courses.

Even so, Christopher Newport has felt the effects of people seeking new kinds of work.

"This probably started a couple of years ago with military personnel, people whose careers in the service were coming to an end, especially as the local military began to make cutbacks," McLoughland said.

Typical of this group is an Air Force major who is a student in one of McLoughland's classes.

The major, who did not want his name used, said he is afraid he may be forced to retire early. If he is, he wants to return to school full-time to get an advanced degree in history so he can teach.

"I've come to realize that my marketability to the military industrial complex is very small now," he said.